Sweeping apparatus

ABSTRACT

A sweeping apparatus including a body having a first surface and a second surface, the first surface being different than the second surface, a receptacle configured to receive debris via a passageway, the receptacle including a door disposed on the first surface and an actuatable member disposed on the second surface, the door releasably coupled to the body via the actuatable member, and a plurality of brushes operatively coupled to the body, configured to urge debris into the receptacle via the passageway.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 62/450,883, filed on Jan. 26, 2017, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

FIELD

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a floor sweeper and moreparticularly to a hand held floor sweeper having a plurality of sweepingbrushes and a receptacle.

BACKGROUND

Cleaning can be a difficult and undesirable chore. Many existingcleaning implements, such as brooms and dustpans, can be difficult touse and are often unreliable in properly cleaning. Brooms and dustpanstypically require the user to bend over close to the floor. Yet still,brooms and dustpans are unable to collect all of the mess, oftenspreading the mess and leaving much of the mess on the floor.Frequently, debris and particles of the mess are unable to be swept upby the sweeping action of the broom into the dustpan past the edge wherethe dustpan meets the floor, and the sweeping action of the broomcommonly propels debris and particles past the dustpan. Further, much ofthe mess captured in a dustpan regularly escapes the dustpan as the messis being transported to a garbage receptacle, requiring the user torepeat the futile efforts to clean with a dustpan and broom.

SUMMARY

Embodiments of the present invention can provide a sweeping apparatusincluding a body having a first surface and a second surface, the firstsurface being different than the second surface, a receptacle configuredto receive debris via a passageway, the receptacle including a doordisposed on the first surface and an actuatable member disposed on thesecond surface, the door releasably coupled to the body via theactuatable member, and a plurality of brushes operatively coupled to thebody, configured to urge debris into the receptacle via the passageway.

According to certain embodiments, the first surface may include a bottomsurface. The second surface may include a back surface of the body.Further, the door may be disposed between a pair of wheels.

According to certain embodiments, the plurality of brushes may include afirst brush, a second brush, and a third brush, the first and secondbrush having axes of rotation substantially perpendicular to an axis ofrotation of the third brush. The first and second brushes may havebristles which extend beyond a perimeter of the body. Moreover, thefirst brush may rotate in a direction opposite to the second brush.

According to certain embodiments, the sweeping apparatus may furtherinclude at least one wheel having teething configured to cause rotationof at least one of the plurality of brushes. Further, the sweepingapparatus may include a handle assembly, the handle assembly havingmembers to allow a user to adjust a length of the handle assembly.

According to certain embodiments, the body may include a triangularopening disposed between at least two of the plurality of brushes.

According to certain aspects, a top portion of the actuatable member maybe spring biased away from the body. The door may open upon actuation ofa top portion of the actuatable member. A bottom portion of theactuatable member may include a protrusion configured to releasablyengage the door. Further, the actuatable member may be pivotally coupledto the body.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and advantages of the present invention can be more readilyunderstood from the following detailed description with reference to theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping apparatus according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping apparatus according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping apparatus according to oneembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping apparatus according to oneembodiment of the present invention

FIG. 5 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping apparatus according to oneembodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping assembly according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram of an exemplary sweeping assembly according to oneembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Exemplary embodiment of the present invention can provide a novelsweeping apparatus. An embodiment of the present invention can providean exemplary sweeping apparatus as shown in FIGS. 1-7. Exemplarysweeping apparatus 100 can facilitate cleaning of a surface. Exemplarysweeping apparatus 100 may include handle assembly 108 and sweepingassembly 102. Handle assembly 108 may be pivotally coupled to sweepingassembly 102 via coupling mechanism 106. In operation, exemplarysweeping apparatus 100 can be used to clean any surface desired by auser.

As shown in FIGS. 1-5, handle assembly 108 may be coupled to sweepingassembly 102 and may be configured to facilitate operation of sweepingapparatus 100, for example, by allowing a user to move sweepingapparatus 100 over a surface. For example, a user can grip handleassembly 108 and maneuver sweeping assembly 102 over the surface beingswept. Handle assembly 108 may include gripping elements 115, firstmember 110, second member 111, and third member 113, and handle opening116. Gripping element 115 can allow a user to ergonomically grip handleassembly 108, while members 110, 111, 113 may allow for handle assembly108 to be adjustable in length. For example, members 110 of handleassembly 108 may allow the overall length of handle assembly 108 to beadjusted. First member 110 may be axially received inside second member111, which may be axially received within third member 113. Third member113 may be coupled to sweeping assembly 102 via coupling mechanism 106.In one embodiment of the present invention, members 110, 111, 113 may betelescopically coupled to allow a user to adjust the length withouthaving to decouple members 110, 111, 113 from each other. In anotherembodiment of the present invention, members 110, 111, 113 may becoupled via threading disposed on the ends of members 110, 111, 113. Forexample, first member 110 may include a male end with threading whichmay be received by a female end of second member 111 to secure firstmember 110 to second member 111. Moreover, second member 111 may includea male end with threading on an end opposite the female end, which maybe received by a female end of third member 113. Third member 113 may beinserted into coupling mechanism 106.

As shown in FIGS. 1-5, handle assembly 108 may also include lockingmechanisms 112 which may allow members 110, 111, 113 to be locked in adesired configuration or length. To reduce the weight of handle assembly108, members 110, 111, 113 may be hollow cylinders made out of plastic.However, members 110, 111, 113 can be made of various desired materials,including aluminum, stainless steel, wood, or any other materialdesired. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1-4, handle assembly 108 can includehandle opening 116 at a distal end of handle assembly 108 so thatsweeping apparatus 100 can be stored by hanging sweeping apparatus 100.For example, a hook or other hanging device may be inserted into handleopening 116 of handle assembly 108 to hang sweeping apparatus 100.

As shown in FIGS. 1-5, handle assembly 108 may be operatively coupled tosweeping assembly 102 via coupling mechanism 106. In one embodiment,coupling mechanism 106 may include recess 109 configured to allowcoupling mechanism 106 to couple handle assembly 108 to sweepingassembly 102. Coupling mechanism 106 may be configured to releasablycouple handle assembly 108 to sweeping assembly 102. However, handleassembly 108 can also be fixed to sweeping assembly 102 by couplingmechanism 106. Coupling mechanism 106 may also be configured topivotally couple handle assembly 108 to sweeping assembly 102, allowinghandle assembly 108 to move in a free range of motion in 360 degrees.

As shown in FIGS. 1-5, coupling mechanism 106 may include first hinge105 and second hinge 107. First hinge 105 may be configured to move in aforward to backward direction and second hinge 107 may be configured tomove in a right to left direction to allow handle assembly 108 to have afree range of motion relative to sweeping assembly 102 in 360 degrees inmultiple planes. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4-5, second hinge 107 mayinclude slot 127 which may receive first hinge 105. In one embodiment ofthe present invention, first hinge 105 may be inserted into slot 127 ofsecond hinge 107 forming a saddle joint, allowing for 360-degree rangeof motion. Alternatively, coupling mechanism 106 can be configured withless than a 360-degree range of motion. For example, coupling mechanism106 may have only one hinge configured to allow movement in only oneaxis. However, coupling mechanism can have any number of hinges, such asone, two, three, four, or any other number desired. Coupling mechanism106 may also include other pivoting mechanisms to provide various rangesof motion. For example, coupling mechanism 106 can couple handleassembly 108 to sweeping assembly 102 with a ball-in-socket joint, afastener, a magnet, or any other coupling mechanism. Further, couplingmechanism 106 can include a releasably locking mechanism that may beconfigured to fix sweeping assembly 102 to handle assembly 108 indesired configurations.

As shown in FIG. 7, sweeping assembly 102, can include body 104,rotation assembly 126, receptacle 140, and wheels 134, 136. The rotationassembly 126 may include lateral brushes 120, 122, and center brush 124,center axle 125, and gears 130, 132, configured to rotate brushes 120,122, 124. Body 104 may encompass a substantial portion of rotationassembly 126 and receptacle 140.

In one embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 1-7,rotation assembly 126, receptacle 140, and wheels 134, 136 may bedisposed within body 104. BodyBody 104 may be made out of plastic.However, body 104 can be made of any other material, such as metal orany other durable material desired. BodyBody 104 may be coupled tohandle assembly 108 via coupling mechanism 106, which may be disposed ontop of bodybody 104. Alternatively, coupling mechanism 106 may bedisposed on the front, back, or side of body 104. As shown in FIGS. 1-7,the bottom of body 104 may be substantially flat, with an opening forbrushes 120, 122, 124 to urge particles into receptacle 140 to captureand retain the debris being cleaned by sweeping apparatus 100. Thebottom of body 104 may include a perimeter around the bottom of body 104which defines the outer limits of body 104. As shown in FIGS. 6-7, oneembodiment of sweeping assembly 102 may include body 104 with aperimeter that is substantially trapezoidal in shape, with the longer ofthe parallel edges at the front of the sweeping assembly 102. Thetrapezoidal shape of body 104 is configured to allow first vertex 117and second vertex 119 to access corners of a room for sweeping andcleaning. Alternatively, body 104 can be configured in any desiredshape, including triangular, rectangular, circular, oval,diamond-shaped, and other geometric or non-geometric shape. The topsurface of body 104 may be sloped downward away from coupling mechanism106 to the perimeter of body 104. In one embodiment, as shown in FIGS.1-2, body 104 may be configured with body opening 118 having asubstantially triangular shape. Body opening 118 can be located betweenlateral brushes 120, 122 to allow particles to be urged into receptacle140. Alternatively, body opening 118 can be located anywhere along theperimeter of body 104. Body opening 118 may be configured in any desiredshape to allow debris into receptacle 140.

As shown in FIGS. 4-7, rotation assembly 126 may be disposed in thefront portion of body 104 and may include brushes 120, 122, 124 andgears 130, 132 which may be configured to rotate brushes 120, 122, 124.However, rotation assembly 126 may be disposed anywhere in body 104. Forexample, rotation assembly 126 may disposed in the back, side, bottom,or any other location. Further, although FIGS. 4-7 show rotationassembly 126 having two gears 130, 132, rotation assembly 126 mayinclude any number of wheels. For example, rotation assembly 126 mayinclude one wheel, three wheels, four wheels, or any number of wheelsdesired. In one embodiment of the present invention, lateral brushes120, 122 may be circular. However, lateral brushes 120, 122 may betriangular, octagonal, or any other shape. Lateral brushes 120, 122 maybe made from various materials, including plastic or metal. As shown inFIG. 7, lateral brushes 120, 122 may be substantially the same size andshape. Alternatively, lateral brush 120 may be a different shape thanlateral brush 122. In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, bristles 121,123 of lateral brush 120 and lateral brush 122 may extend beyond theperimeter of body 104. Lateral brush 120 and lateral brush 122 mayinclude bristles 121 and 123, respectively, which may extend outwardfrom their respective centers. However, lateral brushes 120, 122 may beconfigured without bristles 121, 123. For example, lateral brushes 120,122 may be configured with a cleaning pad or an adhesive strip.

In one embodiment of the present invention, bristles 121, 123 may coverthe circumference and/or perimeter of lateral brush 120 and lateralbrush 122 at various intervals and may be substantially the same length.In another embodiment of the present invention, lateral brush 120 andlateral brush 122 may have bristles 121, 123 of alternating shorter andlonger lengths or any other configuration of bristle thickness andlength. For example, bristles 121, 123 need not surround the entirecircumference of lateral brushes 120, 122 or may have gaps betweengroups of bristles. The orientation and lengths of bristles 121, 123 canbe configured in any desired combination. As shown in FIG. 7, bristles121, 123 may be connected to the center of lateral brushes 120, 122 byspokes 131, 133. The center of lateral brushes 120, 122 may be designedto freely rotate around their center axes. The center axes of lateralbrushes 120, 122 may be perpendicular to the spokes. Lateral brushes120, 122 can be configured without spokes 131, 133. For example, thecenters of lateral brushes 120, 122 may have a solid continuous shape,with no gaps. For example, lateral brushes 120, 122 may be a solidcircular shape, a gear shape, or any other geometric orientation.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 7, rotation assembly 126 mayfurther include center brush 124, which may be disposed between lateralbrushes 120, 122. However, center brush 124 may be disposed in front of,behind, above or below lateral brushes 120, 122. According to certainembodiments of the present invention, center brush 124 may have acylindrical shape. Alternatively, center brush 124 can be configuredwith a helix shape, a conical shape, or any other geometric shape.Center brush 124 may rotate about center axle 125 and may includebristles 129. Bristles 129 of center brush 124 may extend outward fromcenter axle 125 along the length of center brush 124. In one embodimentof the present invention, bristles 129 of center brush 124 may besubstantially the same length. Alternatively, bristles 129 of centerbrush 124 may be configured to be alternating shorter and longerlengths. According to certain embodiments, bristles 129 may be made ofthe same material as bristles 121 and 123. However, bristles 129 may bemade out of a different material than bristles 121 or 123.

In one embodiment of the present invention, gears 130, 132 may bedisposed at opposite ends of center axle 125 of rotation assembly 126.Gears 130, 132 may be operatively coupled to brushes 120, 122, 124 torotate brushes 120, 122, 124. Brushes 120, 122, 124 may be configured torotate in a forward and backward direction. For example, forwardrotation of gears 130, 132 may cause forward rotation of brushes 120,122, 124, and backward rotation of gears 130, 132 may cause backwardrotation of brushes 120, 122, 124. Although FIG. 7 shows two gears 130,132, Brushes 120, 122, 124 may be rotated by any number of gears,including one, three, four, or any number of gears desired. In oneembodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4-7, gears 130, 132 may include teeth 135along the circumference, configured to fit between spokes 131, 133 oflateral brushes 120, 122, and engage with the surface being swept. Inpractice, movement of sweeping apparatus 100 causes rotation of gears130, 132, as gears 130, 132 may come into contact with the surface beingcleaned during movement of sweeping apparatus 100. Rotation of gears130, 132 may cause rotation of lateral brushes 120, 122 in a directionperpendicular to the rotation of gears 130, 132, and may also cause therotation of third brush 124.

According to one embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, receptacle 140of sweeping assembly 102 may be disposed in the back portion of body 104and may include door 141. However, receptacle 140 may be disposedanywhere within body 104, including the front or sides of body 104.Although FIG. 7 shows receptacle 140 being disposed within body 104,receptacle 140 may be disposed outside of body 104. For example,receptacle 140 may be a container that is external to body 104 that maycouple to body 104 during use of sweeping apparatus 100.

As shown in FIG. 7, receptacle 140 may be configured with door 141 foraccess to debris collected during use of sweeping apparatus 100 and mayfurther include actuatable member 142. Actuatable member 142 may beconfigured to cause door 141 to open and pivot away from body 104,allowing debris collected in receptacle 140 to be easily discarded. Inone embodiment of the present invention, debris may enter receptacle 140via passageway 143 which may be disposed behind center brush 124 andprovide fluid communication between receptacle 140 and the exterior ofsweeping assembly 102. Forward rotation of brushes 120, 122, 124 mayurge debris to enter receptacle via passageway 143, and debris may beremoved from receptacle 140 via door 141 and actuatable member 142.However, sweeping assembly 102 may include additional passagewayslocated behind lateral brushes 120, 122. Rotation of lateral brushes120, 122 in a reverse direction may urge debris into the additionalpassageways located behind lateral brushes 120, 122. In one embodimentof the present invention, sweeping assembly 102 may be configured toallow debris to only enter receptacle 104 via passageway 143, but notallow debris exit sweeping assembly 102 via passageway 143.

In one embodiment of the present invention, door 141 may be disposed ona surface of sweeping assembly 102 adjacent to the surface being cleanedby sweeping apparatus 100 e.g., a bottom surface of sweeping assembly102. Alternatively, door 141 may be disposed anywhere on sweepingassembly 102, including the top or the sides. Door 141 may be pivotablycoupled to body 104 via a hinge. However, door 141 may be coupled tobody 104 via other methods, such as magnets, fasteners, sliding grooves,or any other method. Door 141 may be configured to be in an openposition or closed position. Door 141 may be secured in a closedposition via actuatable member 142. As shown in FIG. 3, actuatablemember 142 may be disposed on a surface other than the surface on whichdoor 141 is disposed, for example, e.g., the back, top, side, etc. ofbody 104 when door 141 is disposed on a bottom surface of body 104.Actuatable member 142 may be engaged with door 141 and may be biased tokeep door 141 in a closed position.

As shown in FIG. 3, actuatable member 142 may include top portion 150,center portion 152, and bottom portion 154. In one embodiment of thepresent invention, actuatable member 142 may be pivotally coupled tobody 104 at center portion 152 via a pin, magnet, fastener, or any othercoupling device. Actuatable member 142 may be able to pivot about centerportion 152. Further, top portion 150 of actuatable member 142 may bespring biased away from body 104, resulting in bottom portion 154 ofactuatable member 142 being closer to body 104, due to actuatable member142 being pivotally coupled to body 104 at center portion 152. Bottomportion 154 may include a protrusion which may engage with door 141.Specifically, door 141 may rest on the protrusion of bottom portion 154.In practice, actuating of top portion 150 causes the protrusion ofbottom portion 154 to move away from body 104 and disengage with door141. The protrusion of bottom portion 154 disengaging with door 141,causes door 141 to open due to gravity. Once top portion 150 ofactuatable member 142 is no longer actuated by a user, door 141 may beplaced in a closed position covering receptacle 140, and the protrusionof bottom portion 154 may be engaged with door 141 due to top portion150 being biased away from body 104. This allows door 141 to rest on theprotrusion of bottom portion 154 and remain in a closed position. Door141 resting on the protrusion of bottom portion 154 secures door 141 ina closed position until top portion 150 of actuatable member 142 isactuated.

In practice, a user may actuate top portion 150 of actuatable member 142to cause door 141 to open and provide access to receptacle 140. A usermay actuate top portion 150 of actuatable member 142, which may causedoor 141 to open, causing debris within receptacle to fall out. Door 141being located on the bottom of body 104 and actuatable member 142 beinglocated adjacent to door 141 on a separate surface of body 104, forexample, on the back of body 104, allows for the debris in receptacle140 to be removed in an easy manner when top portion 150 of actuatablemember 142 is actuated. For example, a user may actuate top portion 150of actuatable member 141 when sweeping apparatus 100 is placed over atrash bin. Actuatable member 142 may be configured to cause door 142 toopen upon actuation, causing debris to easily fall out of receptacle 140and directly into a trash bin. Door 141 being located on the bottom ofbody 104 limits the amount of engagement a user is required to make withthe debris in receptacle 140. According to certain embodiments of thepresent invention, receptacle 140 may be configured to be removed fromsweeping assembly 102. The removable receptacle may be disposed withinor outside of body 104.

As shown in FIGS. 4-5, 7, sweeping assembly 102 may include wheels 134,136 disposed towards the back of sweeping assembly 102. Wheels 134, 136may be disposed anywhere on sweeping assembly 102. Although FIG. 7 showssweeping assembly 102 having two wheels 134, 136, sweeping assembly 102may have any number of wheels, including zero, one, three, four, or anyother number desired. Wheels 134, 136 may be fixed to sweeping assembly102 or may be removable. In one embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4-5 and 7,wheels 134, 136 may be smaller than gears 130, 132. However, wheels 134,136 may be substantially the same size or larger than gears 130, 132.Wheels 134, 136 may allow for movement of sweeping apparatus 100.

The embodiments and examples shown above are illustrative, and manyvariations can be introduced to them without departing from the spiritof the disclosure. For example, elements and/or features of differentillustrative and exemplary embodiments herein may be combined with eachother and/or substituted with each other within the scope of thedisclosure. For a better understanding of the disclosure, referenceshould be had to any accompanying drawings and descriptive matter inwhich there is illustrated exemplary embodiments of the presentinvention.

1. A sweeping apparatus comprising: a body having a first surface and asecond surface, the first surface being different than the secondsurface; a receptacle configured to receive debris via a passageway, thereceptacle including a door disposed on the first surface and anactuatable member disposed on the second surface, the door releasablycoupled to the body via the actuatable member; and a plurality ofbrushes operatively coupled to the body, configured to urge debris intothe receptacle via the passageway.
 2. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1,wherein the first surface includes a bottom surface.
 3. The sweepingapparatus of claim 1, wherein the second surface includes a back surfaceof the body.
 4. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pluralityof brushes includes a first brush, a second brush, and a third brush,the first and second brush having axes of rotation substantiallyperpendicular to an axis of rotation of the third brush.
 5. The sweepingapparatus of claim 5 wherein, the first and second brushes have bristleswhich extend beyond a perimeter of the body.
 6. The sweeping apparatusof claim 5 wherein, the first brush rotates in a direction opposite tothe second brush.
 7. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1, furthercomprising at least one wheel having teething configured to causerotation of at least one of the plurality of brushes.
 8. The sweepingapparatus of claim 1 further comprising a handle assembly, the handleassembly having members to allow a user to adjust a length of the handleassembly.
 9. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the bodyincludes a triangular opening disposed between at least two of theplurality of brushes.
 10. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1, wherein thedoor is disposed between a pair of wheels.
 13. The sweeping apparatus ofclaim 1, wherein a top portion of the actuatable member is spring biasedaway from the body.
 14. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1, wherein abottom portion of the actuatable member includes a protrusion configuredto releasably engage the door.
 15. The sweeping apparatus of claim 1,wherein the actuatable member is pivotally coupled to the body.
 16. Thesweeping apparatus of claim 1, wherein the door opens upon actuation ofa top portion of the actuatable member.